Is The World Ready for TWO Sleepy Hollow TV Shows?

Washington Irving’s Ichabod Crane, the her of his “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow”, has never been more popular. The almost 200-year old story is getting a new lease on life nowadays, with not one but two TV series based on the character currently gestating around Hollywood. And both appears to be contemporary takes on the early 19th century tale.

One version of the story would re-imagined Crane as an FBI agent, and is currently being pursued by the CW network based on an idea developed by writers Patrick Macmanus and Grant Scharbo (ABC’s “Missing” with Ashley Judd). The show would find FBI agent Crane arriving at the town of Sleepy Hollow to investigate a mysterious beheading and, we presume, associated supernatural shenanigans.

The show is being called a “boundary-pushing horror story”. Which I guess is better than a “totally inside the envelope, and not at all challenging” horror story. (Expect the casting of some familiar handsome and pretty CW regulars if the network does land the show. The CW loves to re-cast its actors.)

Meanwhile, the ubiquitous duo of Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci (“Hawaii Five-0″, “Fringe”, and every other big-budget studio Summer film currently being made in Hollywood or thereabouts) are at it again, this time developing their own version of the Sleepy Hollow tale with writer Phillip Iscove, who came up with the original idea. Well, an original take on the old idea, anyway. I swear, as much as they have going on, I don’t know when Kurtzman and Orci find the time to sleep.

This version would fine Ichabod Crane partnering up with Sleepy Hollow’s local female sheriff to “solve the mysteries of a town ravaged by the battle between good and evil.” It, too, sounds a lot like a contemporary take on the story, since we’re talking about a female Sheriff and all. It also sounds a lot like ABC’s “Once Upon a Time”, but perhaps with a more, you know, believable Sheriff.

Kurtzman and Orci are currently trying to sell the idea to a network, but already have “Underworld’s” Len Wiseman onboard to direct the pilot episode.

“The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” was last seen on the big screen in a movie by Tim Burton, starring Johnny Depp as Crane.